Ash,Atarn
by CommanderCronos
Summary: This is the story of Ash'Atarn. An Orc in skyrim that will change the land in more ways than he could ever have imagined.
1. Chapter 1: Welcome to Skyrim

_So I have been playing Skyrim again recently and i have really been enjoying it. This has made me decide to write about my character and his adventures in the world. His name is Ash'Atarn and he is an Orc. I will be following the main story and some of the side quests so I will warn people now that there will be spoilers. I hope you all like it. Please feel free to review and let me know what you think._

* * *

Chapter 1: Helgen.

He heard the world coming back to him before he saw it. Fuzzy and in the distance he could hear them talking.

"Where are they taking us?" asked a worried voice.

"I don't know, but..Sovengarde awaits" said another as the voices became clearer.

"No that's not possible. I…I'm.."

Ash'Atarn blinked and sat up a bit straighter taking in the scene. The air was cold, it whipped some of his stray black hairs around his face. Most of his mid length hair was tied back in a high ponytail, stopping it from blocking his view of the situation he now found himself in. His yellow eyes darted from left to right observing the exchange between the others in the wooden cart as it made its way along the cobbled road pulled by a single horse. The man sitting in front of him was a human Nord. His dirty blonde hair lay messily across his face as he faced the man on his left.

"Where are you from horse thief?" asked the Nord.

The smaller man wrung his hands together and without looking to him he answered.

"R-r-rorikstead, I'm from Rorikstead. Why do you ask?"

The Nord nodded to him.

"A Nord's last thoughts should be of home."

Ash'Atarn agreed with this. His thoughts briefly turned to his home and his family before they were interrupted by the talkative man in front of him.

"Hey you, Orc. You're finally awake"

He nodded at this and shifted his jaw from side to side, still slightly sore from the fight it had taken to bring him down. His lip was cut. He licked the blood from the inside of his mouth, realising this wound must have come from a strike to the face; smashing his lip into his pointed tusk. He had smallish tusks as far as Orcs went. In place of where his eyebrows should be he had small spikes pointing out and a few similar spikes on top of his head positioned at his hair line. His brow furrowed as he remembered the encounter that had resulted in him being here in this cart.

"You were caught trying to cross the boarder right?" The Nord asked.

"Something like that." Nodded Ash'Atarn.

The thief suddenly interjected in their conversation. "You. You and I shouldn't be here. It's these damn Stormcloaks the Empire wants"

He nodded in agreement. The empire did want these Stormcloaks. That much was true. However being a Stormcloak wasn't the only reason to find your self in this situation, as he and the horse thief were evidence to.

Ash'Atarn grunted and looked away from the small dark haired human. He didn't know why the small man was here but he refused to listen to his snivelling. The thief sighed and wrung his hands together in the leather straps that bound them all. "Damn it. could have been half way to Hammerfell by now." He seemed to be getting more agitated as the cart rolled along the bumpy road. He looked up from his bound hands and to the man in front of him, the Nord to Ash'Atarn's left.

"What's wrong with him?"

"Hey" said the Nord across from Ash'Atarn" Watch your tongue! That's Ulfric Stormcloak. The true High King of Skyrim"

Turning to regard the man next to him Ash'Atarn saw a man who, by anyone's description looked like a true Nord. The man was middle aged and had a look about him like he had seen many battles. His blonde hair was sitting over his shoulders as he sat there proudly. Even in this situation he seemed like he knew no fear. Whether or not this was for show Ash'Atarn did not know. However he hardly cared, for the thing that seemed strangest about him was the fact that he was gagged as well as bound with leather straps on his hands.

Ash'Atarn looked away from him when the thief piped up.

"Ulfric? Jarl of Windehelm? Oh gods, where are they taking us?"

No one had an answer for that and it wouldn't have mattered as the guard shouted to them from the front of the cart. "Shut up back there!"

Ash'Atarn looked away from them all and down to his hands. They had tied the binding tightly, the knots were tied in an expert fashion. He twisted his hands to see if he could find any leverage. His muscle bulged and twisted as he tried to bend and break the hold they had on him. He used what strength he could without drawing too much attention to himself, which was still quite a fair amount of power in his arms.

Still he could not break them without alerting anyone. He sighed. These Imperials knew how to tie a knot it seemed. He would simply have to wait and see where the cart was going. He sat back against the bench as the cold air and specs of snow blew around him. He was in a tunic that was too small for him and it allowed an annoying amount of the chilling wind to get to his dark green skin causing his hair to stand on end for a few seconds each time the wind howled.

He didn't complain however. He had lived out in the open for most of his life as he his family had moved around. Well they had…not anymore. Remembering the events of the previous few days was unpleasant and he eyed the soldier driving the cart with anger as the memories swirled in his mind.

As the neared the bottom of the hill they approached a small fort. The doors opened and the cart rode in.

The Nord in front of him was peering over at a gathering of Imperials and elves.

"There's that damned General Tullius. Of course the Thalmor are with him. Should have known they would have a hand in this." Said the Nord with distain.

The gathering stopped their talking as the carts approached, eyeing the prisoners with sombre faces as they were taken past and down to what seemed to be the town square.

"Helgen." Said the Nord. He seemed to be the only one who felt like talking. "This is Helgen. I used to be sweet on a girl from here. I wonder if Vilod is still making that mead with be berries…" He trailed off as he looked around. People were starting to gather as the procession made its way down the small hill to the courtyard. Behind them General Tullius and his group of soldiers were keeping pace with the carts.

They came to a stop and the soldiers began to dismount. "why have we stopped?" asked the thief shakily.

The Nord stared at him and said "Why do you think? End of the line?" The doors at the back were opened. "Get out!" shouted the soldier. The Nord smiled slightly "Come on, don't want to keep the gods waiting."

Ulfric jumped down from the cart, landing on his feet with a grunt. The thief was next to jump down. His fortitude failed him it seemed as he crashed to the ground. He was yanked up by a soldier. The little man seemed almost frantic by this point, his eyes darted around to the soldiers, the citizens, the other prisoners and finally – the executioners' block.

The Nord jumped down as Ash'Atarn stood. He stretched his back for the first time in hours and he had to admit it felt good not to be hunched over on that bench. He smiled at the irony of feeling good at a moment like this when it seemed his head and body were going to be parting ways very soon. A couple of the guards looked at him with wide eyes as he finished his stretch. He was indeed an impressive warrior. He stood at almost 6ft 5' in height and his frame was well built from years of hard ship and training. His mother had taught him smithing from a young age and his father had long been a warrior. From their shared experience Ash'Atarn had grown into a shining example of an Orc.

He jumped down to the ground, landing gracefully considering his size. As they lined up an imperial started reading from a list.

"Ulfric Stormcloak, Jarl of Windhelm."

"Empire loves their damn lists!" said the Nord with a frown on his face. He nodded to Ulfric" It has been an honour Jarl Ulfric!"

Lokir, the thief, stepped forward shaking with fear and with a glint of desperation in his eyes. "You can't do this, I'm not a rebel!" The man couldn't hold himself together any longer. He mad a dash for it knocking into the brown haired soldier with the list and sprinting past the Legate as she stood there.

"HALT!" she shouted. He did not stop he sprinted for all he was worth. She raised her hand "ARCHERS!"

Mad with adrenaline and fear he ran on. "You're not gonna kill me!"

The twang of several bowstrings and 3 arrows embedding themselves in his back quickly refuted the small mans claim as his momentum carried him off his feet and through the air with the force of the arrows. His body hit the hard stone floor. He however had the good fortune not to feel the impact. He was already dead.

The man lay dead and the Legate turned back to the remaining prisoners nodding for the soldier with the list to continue. He looked back down to his list and read.

"Ralof of Riverwood!"

The Nord, Ralof stepped forward. He shared a look with the soldier who was reading the list for a second and they both seemed to glared for just a few moments. Clearly they knew each other although in some way. This was as much as Ash'Atarn could glean from their encounter as neither gave away more in the few seconds they locked narrowed eyes.

As Ralof made his way to stand with the others they called him forward. "Next prisoner!" the Imperial looked down to his list and his eyes darted up and down for a moment. He stepped forward looking down as he loomed over the man who was not small by any account, but still shorter than the mighty and proud Orc.

"Wait…You're not on the list" the man lifted his head slightly to meet eyes with Ash'Atarn. He paused for a second then asked,

"Who are you?"

Looking into the mans eyes he could see the confusion as to why this Orc was here but not on the list. So Ash'Atarn spoke up.

"I am Ash'Atarn. A traveler in these parts. My family were making their way through on our way to Cyrodiil." He narrowed his eyes as he recalled the details, falling silent he looked away from the man. If the Imperial was waiting for more details he wasn't going to get them from him this day.

The soldier looked to the Legate "Captain what should we do? He's not on the list"

The legate turned from what she was doing and looked Ash'Atarn. She simply scoffed at him "List or no, he goes to the block."

The Man turned back and looked truly sorry as he sighed at the decision "I'm sorry, I'll see to it that you're remains are returned to Orsinium. Please follow the Captain." Ash'Atarn nodded to him and followed her over to the other prisoners. They were standing in lines just as General Tullius walked over to stand before Ulfric Stormcloak. Many of the Stormcloak prisoners and Imperial soldiers looked around nervously as they saw the General and the Jarl came face to face. It seemed that these men had a bitter rivalry that showed in the faces of the men who followed them.

"Ulfric Stormcloak. Some men call you a hero, but a hero does not use a power such as the Voice to murder their High King."

Ash'Atarn eyes widened slightly at this. He had heard news of someone killing the high king of this land but he didn't know anything about this _Voice. _The general continued his speech and condemed Ulfric for everything he had done. Starting the war, leading hundereds of soldiers against the Empire. In the end he walked of as Ulfric's eyes bore a hole in his back. All that was left now was the block.

They all turned to the Legate as she began to adress them. A priest stepped forward to join her and begin talking about the gods and how thier souls would be welcomed into the afterlife and blah, blah, blah. A Stormcloak stepped forward as she was talking and interupted "For the love of Talos, shut up and lets get this over with" The priest stopped her speech and looked slightly annoyed. "As you wish"

The priest walked off and the Stormcloak walked over to the block. The Legate stood behind him and forced him down to his knees and his head onto the block. The man smiled and turned his head to the excecutioner as he raised his massive axe "My ancestors are smiling at me Imperials, can you say the same!"

With a gut renching slice the axe came down and decapitated the man.

"As fearless in death as he was in life" muttered Ralof next to him. Ash'Aturn had to agree, the man had faced his death with honour.

Suddenly a roar ripped though the air unlike anything Ash'Atarn had ever heard. Like a word being shouted and whispered at the same time. Roarded by an animal, yet spoken like a wise sage all at once. Everyone held their ears and looked to the sky but there was nothing. They all looked confused and scared. People were asking each other " What was that?" "Where did that come from?". The prisoners were still blinking to clear their heads due to the fact they had been unable to cover their ears with their hands bound.

The Legate had stopped looking around and was staring at the group. "Next prisoner, the Orc!". She pointed at Ash'Atarn, not that she would have needed to due to him being the only Orc there. He sighed and took a step forward and said.

"Time to go it seems"


	2. Chapter 2: The Dragon

_Ok so here we go with chapter 2. I hope if your reading it youre enjoying it_

* * *

Ash'Atarn scowled at the Legate as his head was slammed down onto the block. The executioner had just finished cleaning his axe for the next slice, and he could feel the blood of the dead Stormcloak on his neck. He faced the human that was about to end his life. He couldn't believe that it had come to this. His life was about to end. All that he could hope for was that he would find peace in the afterlife.

He tensed as the axe was raised above his head and opened his eyes. He would face his death with honour. Or at least he thought he was about to until he looked up and seen **it** landing on the watch tower.

A massive creature with wings that blocked out the sun and eyes that were red as blood had landed on the tower with an almighty smash. "FusRoDah!" Roared the creature and the force of its voice sent the executioner and soldiers falling to their faces and backs. Shouts rang out "Dragon!" "Run for your lives!". Another shout issued from the beast's mouth and fire started to fall from the sky as it took off again attacking the soldiers that were now attacking it with arrows and spells. Ash'Atarn rolled off of the block and got to his feet. Looking around for cover he saw Ralof standing there beckoning to him "Hey, Orc move. Over here, we wont get another chance." He headed for the small tower that some of the Stormcloaks had gathered in and Ralof was making his way toward now. One of the Nords slammed the door closed behind them as they sprinted though. Ralof turn to speak to Ulrfic who was looking out of a small window at the chaos outside. "Jarl Ulfric, was that really a dragon? Like the old legends say?"

Ulfric had a sombre look on his face "Legends don't burn down villages" He looked over to Ash'Atarn and said to Ralof "You should make your way up the tower and see if you can find a way across." Ralof nodded and broke into a run. "Come on Orc lets see if we cant get out of here." He tried to answer him, to ask him to untie him, but Ralof was already making his way up the stairs. Ash'Atarn followed him not wanting to waste anymore time in this place that he needed to. He hoped that he might get out of here alive after all.

They ran till they got to the next floor where a couple of Nords where moving some rocks away to clear the next staircase. Suddenly Ralof was thrown back into Ash'Atarn as the wall caved in and the Dragon spat fire into the small tower. Blinded by the sudden intense light of the flames he shielded his eyes and when he looked back the dragon was gone and the men were dead. Ralof scrambled to his feet and looked out through the newly created hole in the wall. "Well we cant go up that way, you'll have to jump across to the building next to us."

Ash'Atarn peered out and saw that it was a bit of a drop. However he was fairly sure he could make it, better than staying here and waiting for the dragon to come back.

"Alright, lets go"

"No you go ahead I need to go to Jarl Ulfric and make sure he gets out safe. I will meet you down there." He went to leave and turned before he reached the stairs "Good luck." And with that he was gone down the stairs.

He didn't want to lose any more time so Ash'Atarn stood on the lip of the hole and leapt. He aimed as well as he could and crashed through the damaged roof of the house. As he broke through he smashed into a table and chairs and they splintered and flew to the sides under his weight. "Urghh…" shifting himself off of the remains of the table and ran to the end of the room where part of the house had been destroyed. He jumped down to the ground floor from there and managed to land on his feet as it was a much shorter fall than the previous one. As he stepped out into the light he saw a familiar face.

"Come over here now child" shouted Hadvar, the Imperial who had before been reading the names from the list. "Quickly now, your doing great" He was talking to a child that had somehow managed to get caught in the open. The young boy reached him just as the Dragon landed in the spot where he had just ran from. Hadvar grabbed the child, his eyes went wide as the dragon open its massive maw revealing a fire building up and ready to burst out at them.

Just as he turned to shield the boy from the blast they were knocked over into cover. When Hadvar opened his eyes he saw the Orc getting to his feet beside them. He had only just gotten to them in time. Ash'Atarn wasn't even sure why he did it. He had simple reacted, unable to let a young boy burn for no reason except from the malice of this huge scaled beast. The dragon flew off to engage some archers that were firing arrows rapidly into its flank.

Hadvar stood " Still alive prisoner? Stick with me if you want to stay that way."

"I could same the same to you Imperial." Responded Ash'Atarn.

At that the imperial seemed to soften for a moment "Yes, thank you for that. We're lucky you came along when you did." He gained his composure and turned to a near by human whose arms the young boy had ran to after being saved. "Keep him safe. Lets go Orc." They took off across the yard and in between houses as they made their way towards where there seemed to be a gathering of soldiers trying to fight the dragon with magic and what ever bows they had. The Dragon moved with great speed and grace as it incinerated archers and picked up soldiers only to release them once it was to high for them ever survive the fall.

They sprinted around a corner as they Dragon cause devastation around them only to come face-to-face with Ralof.

"Ralof! You damn traitor!" shouted Hadvar.

Ralofs head snapped around as he herad the accusation "Were escaping Hadvar, your not stopping us this time!" he shouted as he approached the man and the orc, his sword drawn.

Hadvar shook his head and sighed "Fine. I hope that damn Dragon send you all to Sovngarde"

With that they parted ways the soldier heading for one door to the keep, the Stormcloak to another. They both turned to regard Ash'Atarn as he hadn't made a move to follow either of them. He realized that to get out of here alive he would probably need to go with one of them. Looking from one to the other he knew his decision would have to be quick. His choice was made as he ran over to join Ralof. The Stormcloak seemed trust worthy, as did Hadvar. However he was currently bound by his hands due to Imperials and he wasn't about to go with a man who may not release him when they escaped…if they escaped.

He went into the keep with Ralof and they locked the door behind them. They both stopped for a moment to catch their breath. "That was a close call. A Dragon…can you believe it?" panted Ralof. He went to have a look around the room and found a dagger on the table that someone had clearly being eating at before the Dragon had arrived. "Hey lets see if we can get those bindings off." Walking over to the Nord he held his hands up for him to cut the leather. " I'm Ralof by the way, who are you? I don't want to have to keep calling you Orc."

The leather gave way as Ralof sliced with the dagger. "Ash'Atarn. My name is Ash'atarn."

"Ash'Atarn eh?" he nodded and made his way over to the door leading out of the room opposite the one they entered through. " If its all the same to you I'll call you Ash. Rolls of the tongue easier I think" smiled the nord.

Ash smirked and nodded "Fair enough Nord, and you are Ralof yes?"

Ralof nodded "Yes, nice to meet you" he held out his hand and Ash shook it. He could tell by the man's hand shake that he was strong, as far as humans went. That was to be expected since he seemed to be deeply involved in this rebellion. "Now Ash, What do you say we get out of here?"

"Lead the way Stormcloak" he answer with a grin.

They entered the next room cautiously, not wanting to alert any nearby Imperials to their presence. There had clearly been some fighting as some Stormcloaks lay dead on the floor. Ralof kneeled beside the dead rebels and sighed. "Rest well in Sovngarde brother." Ralof stood and turned to look over at Ash "you may as well take his weapon and armour…if it will fit" he added as he took into account how large the Orc was.

Ash nodded and went over to pick up the dead man's one handed axe and armour. He managed to get the armour on without to much hassle after loosening some of the straps. He hefted the axe in his hand and gave it a few swings. His preferred style of combat was a two-handed weapon, but this would do in the mean time. It was well made and would suffice should he need to defend himself. He walked over to join Ralof as he tried to pry open the metal gate that was blocking their way. "Damn thing is locked" he looked to Ash "You want to give it a try?"

Shrugging he placed his hands on the door trying to find a good grip as Ralof stood to the side. He was about to start pushing when he heard voices. It was some imperial soldiers coming around a corner on the other side of the gate. Quickly he darted to the other side of the door from Ralof and pressed himself against the wall. Ralof heard them talking loudly and making their way toward the door "Ready for a fight?" Ash nodded and griped his axe.

Looks like he would be putting it to the test sooner than he thought.


	3. Chapter 3: Escaping Helgen

Here we go with chapter 3 then. Hope you enjoy. Please feel free to review if you like it.

* * *

Ash pressed himself flat against the wall as he heard the Imperial soldiers approaching the gate. "Lets get out there and try to restore some order!" He recognised that voice, it was the Legate from the execution. "Get this gate open" she ordered one of her men.

Ralof looked over at Ash and nodded. Ash responded with a nod of his own, gripping his axe tight in his hand as the gate swung open and the Legate marched through with two other soldiers.

Ralof dived towards the Legate as she crossed the doorway and she only just managed to duck her head down out of the line of his sword thrust. Taking a step away from Ralof she drew her sword "Damn Stormcloak" she screamed as she lunged in to engage him.

The other two soldiers had stepped through the door behind the Legate and when Ralof had dived at the Legate they moved to attack his unprotected back. However they were cut off as Ash stepped out infront of them. They paused for a second then attacked the large Orc together. He sidestepped to the left out of the path of one blade, parrying the other with the flat of his axe. The soldier closest to him brought the sword back across in a brutal slash aimed at his midsection. However Ash dodged back a step to avoid being sliced open at the guts. The man had put a great amount of his strength into that swing and missing had left his sword arm out to the right, leaving him exposed for just a second. Ash used this second to take a step in and head-butt the man viciously. His head spikes pierced the man's skin and the force of the blow sent him reeling back onto the floor. The other soldier launched his attack from the side as the man fell back. Thrusting his sword at Ash's head he managed to knick him on the cheek as he turned his head to avoid the blow.

Ash was annoyed that he had managed to be blooded due to leaving himself open. He continued his turn and swung his axe low. His axe connected with the mans leg and almost severed it due to the momentum of his spin and the mighty muscles in his arm. The Human fell to the ground screaming in agony. The other soldier had recovered and was charging over hoping to skewer Ash with his longsword, in an attempt to save the man on the floor. The Orc brought up his axe and used the flat side to slap them mans blade down. Using his free hand he grabbed the soldier's wrist and directed his blade into his fallen comrades' chest. The Imperial on the floor gurgled for a moment before dying. The soldiers eyes were wide with shock and anger as he attempted to withdraw his sword from his allies chest. Ash spun his axe in his hand and brought it down into the mans shoulder, once then twice. The soldier coughed up blood and fell to the floor in a heap.

Ash's head spun around to see Ralof still engaged in a furious back and forth with the Legate. For a second the woman gained the upper hand and swatted his blade aside. The Stormcloak had not expected the sudden change of direction and the sword flew from his hand and clattered to the floor. The Legate smiled and raised her sword for the killing blow. Ash knew he would never be able to cross the room in time to intercept her blade. He drew back his arm and let his axe fly. The weapon flew end over end as the Legates sword swiftly made its way toward Ralof's exposed neck. Moments before the blade sliced into him there was a sickening –thunk- as the axe embedded itself in the back of the Imperial. She gasped for a second trying to draw breath, then she dropped her weapon and fell to the ground dead.

Ralof sighed a breath of relief as Ash made his way over to retrieve his weapon. "That was a close one friend" he looked down at the dead woman as the axe was ripped from her back. He smiled to the Orc "How did you know you wouldn't miss?" Ash smiled back to him "I Didn't, but it seemed like even if I did you would have died either way". The Stormcloak looked shocked for a minute then he burst into laughter "Hahaha….I like you Orc…Ash. You dealt with those fighters well. It looks like with a bit of luck we might actually make it out of here"

Ash nodded and looked to the now unlocked gate and walked over to pick up a longsword to replace the axe as it suited his fighting style more "Lets move then before more of them turn up." And with that they ran down the hall

* * *

Ralof and Ash moved slowly down the staircase as they moved through the fort. They had been moving uninterrupted for about twenty minutes now and were making good progress. Just as they came to a corner Ralof raised his hand for Ash to stop "Do you hear that?". Ash listened and indeed he could hear it, the sound of what could only be fighting not far from them.

"We best hurry" said Ralof, clearly worried that some of his comrades could be in danger. They ran along a corridor and stopped when they got to the room where the sounds were coming from. They heard the clash of steel on steel, then suddenly a crackling sound ripped through the air and a scream rang out. They looked at each other then both ran through the door. On the other side they were greeted by two Stormcloaks fighting an imperial soldier and some kind of wizard. The room appeared to be some kind of torture area. The soldier and stormcloak fought furiously, each trying to gain the upper hand. The Imperial swung his Two-handed sword in huge arcs trying to dismember the Nord, who was franticly deflecting the blows with his warhammer. It was the other Stormcloak however who was in the most dire need of assistance. The mage had him on his knees as lightning sparked out from his fingers and into the mans chest. His armour was starting to sizzle as he tried to climb to his feet. Ralof sped across the room to help the soldier engaged in combat with the Imperial, who was swinging his sword with abandon as he tried to cut the man in half.

Ash ran forward with his sword drawn hoping to cut down the magic user. He was not so lucky as the man turned on him and blasted a wave of shocking lightning toward him. The Orc tried to quickly change his direction and dive behind an overturned table. Just as he hit the ground the wave smashed into the wall and floor beside him and he felt his hairs stand on edge as his left arm was dealt a glancing blow. The lightning was indeed powerful as even just an indirect hit like that caused him to go dizzy for a moment. He shook his head quickly to try and clear it and peered over the top of the table he now hid behind. Another wave flew toward him and he quickly ducked behind cover.

"Damn mages" he cursed as the table crackled from the blast. He tried again to get out from behind the table and yet again the mage forced him to take cover. He peered over to Ralof and the other Stormcloak who were still fighting the large Imperial. It looked like they still had their hands full. He couldn't rely on them to come to his aid here.

Suddenly he had an idea!

He quickly exposed his head and ducked down behind the table again. However when the lightning struck the wood he was ready with a surprise for the mage. He gripped the underside of the table and launched it at the magic user. The man's eyes went wide as it soared through the air towards him. He dove to the floor to escape the flying battering ram that was heading for him. When he crashed into the wall behind him he sighed in relief at having dodged it.

His relief was short lived. He climbed to his feet turning quickly to look for the Orc. This had all happened in the space of a few seconds but this was all the time Ash had needed. As the man turned to face him he was already upon him and he plunged his sword through the Imperials neck. The lightning on his finger tips fizzled out as his eyes glazed over in a death stare.

Ash kicked him off of the end of his sword just in time to see Ralof dart in under the fighters sword and slice his belly open, followed by a hammer blow that cracked the man's skull from the other Stormcloak. Ralof cleaned his sword on the fallen trousers of his fallen opponent and sighed deeply, regaining his breath.

"These Imperials don't fall easy do they?" Said the Nord to the other Stormcloak.

The man shook his head and looked over to his companion who now lay dead on the floor, his armour, hair and skin all burnt and singed by the mage's unrelenting lighting.

Ash walked over to join them. "Well fought again Ash" he introduced him to the other Nord "This is Vosmir. Vosmir this is Ash'Atarn" they shook hands in welcome.

"I don't know where you found this one Ralof, but its lucky you both came along when you did. Too much longer and I might have ended up dead on the floor with Bortik" he said pointing to the dead Stormcloak.

Ralof had a saddened look on his face as he looked to the dead man "Another true son of Skyrim struck down fighting for his home land" He regained his composure and turned to the two men "Lets keep going, I don't think we can be far from some kind of exit now". Ash turned to the dead Imperial on the floor and Picked up his greatsword. It was steel and well made, as well as being his weapon of choice. He strapped it to his back and dropped the longsword he had been using previously.

Turning to him Ralof smirked "Must you pick up every damn weapon we find? You'll end up carrying so much you can't run at any decent pace."

"The greatsword is far more suited to me than any weapon we've come across so far" he retorted patting the weapons hilt behind his head. As they walked off he smirked "In any case I might need to save you again soon and you will be glad I brought this sword along when I do".

The Nords laughed as they walked along "Bold words Orc, we shall see I suppose.."

* * *

The Trio had walked for another half an hour before they found a passageway down into a cave system under the castle. When they had made their way deeper into the area they found a small skirmish taking place between some Imperials and Stormcloaks. They joined the fray and managed to quickly deal with the opposing soldiers with few casualties. Ralof had decided it was best to head out from there and some of the other Nords had volunteered to wait behind for Ulfric to ensure he escaped safely. They had bid farewell to the Stormcloaks taken their leave.

Together Ash, Ralof and Vosmir made there way through the cave.

"We've been in these damn caves for too long, we best not be lost" complained Vosmir.

"Have some faith friend" said Ralof "Can't you feel the breeze? We must be getting close."

Ash had to agree. For a few minutes now he had felt the air coming from the direction they were headed. It would be nice to smell the fresh air again.

They came to an opening and stepped out into a large room. The entire roof and most of the walls were covered in webs. Ash drew his sword as did the other two. Spiders in this area could apparently grow quite large and many a wanderer was caught unaware in a giant spider's web. They moved along swiftly trying to get to the other side of the room without incident. As far as any of them could see the spiders didn't seem to be around.

Vosmir swung at one of the webs that blocked his path, getting his warhammer stuck in the process "Damn these webs to oblivion, stupid creatures are-ARRRGH" his sentence was cut off as a spider the size of a human leapt out of its web at him. With his hammer stuck in the web he had nothing to defend himself as the creature tackled him to the ground and pierced his neck with its massive poison fangs.

"Vosmir!" shouted Ralof as he ran over to try and pry the creature from his fallen friend. As Ash ran over to help spiders began to emerge from many webs and made their way toward them, their fangs dripping in anticipation of the meal they hoped to get from this fight.

Ash spun around to defend Ralof's back and the Nord impaled the spider on top of Vosmir with his sword killing the creature. He kicked it off of him but had no time to check on the man as another two began to snap at him.

Having his own problems Ash swung left and right with his powerful arms cleaving any spiders that got too close to pieces. One darted under his defences and made a lunge for his leg. The Orc kicked his leg muscles into action and dodged the spiders fangs with a jump. He came down hard on the creature, feeling it snap beneath him as he landed on its back. Another pounced at his face as he regained his footing. He wasn't able to bring his sword up in time due to him being off balance aster landing on the squishy spider underneath him. He turned his face to the side and closed his eyes, bracing for the impact that would probably leave him flat on his back and unable to defend himself from those deadly fangs. He heard a slice and was surprised when he opened his eyes to see the spider held in mid air. The creature was being supported by Ralofs sword on which it had been impaled.

"Damn creatures" snarled Ralof as he tossed the creature aside to twitch and die on the cold stone floor. "That seems to be the last of them"

They quickly ran over to Vosmir, but they were to late. The Nords skin had gone a sickly green and his eyes were glazed over staring into the distance. He was dead.

"Damn it!" curse Ralof as he punched the ground in anger.

Ash picked the man's warhammer out of the web it had been caught in. He carried it over and laid it on his chest "There is nothing we can do for him now Ralof. I'm sorry"

Ralof got to his feet and sheathed his sword "Lets go" he said as he started walking off from the scene "I want to be gone from this place".

He headed into the tunnel at the other side of the clearing and disappeared. Ash walked after him, only turning to look back when he reached the tunnel. "May the afterlife welcome you brother" he said to Vosmir's lifeless body. With that he departed to catch up with Ralof.

* * *

When he caught up to the Nord he was crouched behind a rock peering over into the cave ahead.

"What are you doing?" Ash whispered as he got closer.

Ralof pointed over to the far end of the cave "Theres a cave bear sleeping over by the wall, I'd rather not wake it up if we can avoid it.

Ash nodded "Thats a sound plan" he looked out at the creature. He did indeed not want to fight it. Enough blood had been spilled today, there was no need for them to fight with this bear who was simply sleeping in its cave. "Lets go"

They crept along the beside the wall furthest from the sleeping beast trying to keep as quiet as possible. Stealth had never been Ash's strong point but he did his best to keep from waking the snoring creature. As they came near to the exit and could finally see sun light it seemed like they would make it safely. Ash turned and faced the bear for a moment and sighed in relief that it was still asleep. He moved to follow Ralof, as he did his sword caught on the wall behind him making a loud –TING- as it did. Ralof froze in front of him and Ash himself stood totally still realising the mistake he made. He turned very slowly to regard the bear.

It shifted its head from where it lay, however it seemed content to just roll over and continue sleeping.

They both sighed heavily and Ralof shook his head, smiling at the Orc. Ash shrugged and apology and pointed toward the exit. Ralof nodded and they made their way out into the sunlight.


End file.
